DC Edge

Remember this post about when I started skating again? Well, in the past few months I have been trying to skate once a week at the local arena by our house. I met a few nice girls, also adult skaters, at the rink who told me about DC Edge, a synchro team. They suggested I try out for the 2010-2011 team, and I just found out that I made the team!

But first, what is synchro? The technical term is synchronized skating. A group of 8-20 skaters performs a program set to music with coordinating turns and skills - all at high speeds. Here is a link to the US Figure Skating page describing the sport.

A video will probably explain it best. This is the Haydenettes of Boston, arguably the best team in the nation as they received 3rd place at Worlds in 2009.

If synchro becomes an Olympic sport in 2014, the Haydenettes are top contenders to represent Team USA. Synchro was a demonstration sport in Vancouver - typically a new sport is given a demonstration year first to test the waters.

The team I will be on is Masters level - meaning our team is comprised of adult skaters competing at the National level. While we won't compete with the Haydenettes at the Senior level, DC Edge has won second place at Nationals for the past two years. Hopefully we can continue to keep it up this year!

Our planned competitions this year include:

• December 2-5: Dr Porter in Ann Arbor, Michigan
• Feb 2-6: Eastern Sectionals in Lake Placid, New York
• Mar 3-7: Nationals in Ontario, California

I'm looking forward to meeting new friends, getting some exercise on the ice, and enjoying skating at a competitive level once again!

- Laurie